18" vs 19" Comparison - The Pros & Cons of your track tire- Best Motoring International

[lancernos]

i upgraded from 245/40/R18 to 255/35/R19 (with Works rims) for my Evo-X, so far no problem....

[gav240z]

Why would braking feel improve with larger wheels? I mean the brakes are the same size? Cooling perhaps?

[ModConsoleAU]

@gav240z

the best way to improve braking is to get better gripping tyres, with the 19inch maybe there was more rubber on the road and therefor more grip, increasing the braking capabilities.

[moh97gt]

18'' F 225 / R 245

19'' F 245 / R 275

that was not a fair test

[dragsteralf]

@moh97gt yeah that was BS. they should of ran the same width on tires and wheels.

[opmike343]

Well, smaller wheels will still look fine on cars if many of the newer ones didn't look like giant, bloated whales with curb weights nearing and exceeding 4,000 pounds. I understand that there's been a move towards safety (an important move), however some companies and models are showing this implementation better than others. So many drivers today want their cars to be the extension of their living rooms. Driver ability (or lack thereof) and vehicle engineering is really reflecting this shift.

[jsiszero]

how can bigger diameter rims good for track days? As far as I know they weigh more... I think 17-18" is a good compromise. The contact patch (how wide the tires are) is more important than diameter.

[omga14]

I noticed that they used a different width rear for the 19" as well as going with a more aggressive offset. That alone will change the dynamics of the cars handling. So in the end they got a very small track time improvement with a car that had more traction in the rear as well as a wider overall track. I wonder what the results would be with and 18" tire setup with more aggressive offset and a wider rear wheel/tire.

[omga14]

Looking at 15" wheels for my 90 Integra, haha. 16 is the biggest that I would ever go on that car even though I've seen people make 17" wheels look very good on that car. Suspension has to be quick and responsive.

Also I completely agree with lejink. Big rims aren't so nice when you drive in bad roads Southern Cali. Cringing every time you hit a 2" high road seam at 65mph on lowered/stiffer suspension.

[hernandadmx]

I agree. car manufacturers are always making a shitload of cash. cars depreciate 30% driving out the lot. Saw a sentra se-r for 22k at dealer. 2010. bought an 09 model for 14k.

[imPRETA]

wow i had a15 inch on my xb LOL :p

[krazzyyo2]

these engineers are nuts

[sk8tildeath91]

I actually like having a bit more tire on the car, I'm saving up to get an s13/14 (not for drifting fyi) but I'm not going any bigger than 17s, also depends on where you live. The area I live in has some deep rain runoffs and part of the area is going through road construction and the roads are a bit rough where the new meets the old.

[MisterPeetBull]

i hate these gooks

[Crusher103]

@MisterPeetBull LMAO.

[EMTium]

@MisterPeetBull because they will accomplish more than you ever will. racist prick welcome to the real world :D

[jwenneberg]

Oops - sorry about that... thought it was a Gran Turismo (Playstation) channel... hehe :-D

[jwenneberg]

18" or 19"... who cares? I want 10" back in the game on my beloved Austin/Morris CLASSIC Mini Cooper S. It is a grandfather for so many small race cars and have outwon many bigger cars over decades.... WHY isn't it in the game anymore? There's no explanation or excuses for it not to be! But VW bus, Ford T, Citoen 2CV for crying out loud... what qualifies those? They arn't even race-cars! ARRGGH!! My guess is that PD has bowed to BMW not to risk the comparisment between classic and new Mini :-(

[krazzyyo2]

@jwenneberg idiot

[enerandrea]

they shoul put a 17s in too!!!

[poltaotata]

Nice test...thanks guys !

[dirtbikemike69]

The more sidewall you have, the more sidewall flex you will have. Granted there is a happy medium aspect ratio for best performance.

[yourmotherrules]

this isn't a valid test

this test is so stupid...

the 18inch rims have smaller tires than the 19inch tires

so there's obviously a difference...

idiots.

[rapzeh4]

"We re-designed the front suspension, increased the suspension rigidity by about 50%, in the rear we increased the rigidity around the axle, in the direction of the camber angle. We also focused on re-designing the axle housing, the bearing for the axle housing were developed to increase the camber stiffness of the suspension"

...FUCK !

[Liist]

The people who designed your car to run on its OEM tire size are not dumb. The only reasons why you need bigger wheels or tires are when you get coilovers, bigger brakes, and more power. Otherwise stick with the OEM size.

[KingFofo666]

19" wheels look redicolous, are heavier, more expensive, less comfortable and the only reason for them being better on the track in this test is because they were much wider than the tyres on the 18" wheel.

[fabaum22]

@KingFofo666 There is a very good reason every 911 racing at Le Man, touring championships and any other category you can think of are all equipped with 18 inch wheels.

They should have tested the stupid e90 M3 instead. It has '18 wheels as standard and '19 as optionals, both having just as wide.

[jan3019]

i prefer 18" not too big not too small =)

[spencermel]

@jan3019 but 17s are lighter.

[chinw3e]

The second number is a percentage of the width, not mm. Eg. 205/40/17, side wall is 40% of 205.

[papapetad]

The only reason they're moving to bigger wheels and tyres is because new cars are getting fatter. Stupid impact laws are not helping drivers become better but rather making them poorer because their cars cost more to run and when they want cool aftermarket wheels they need to buy OTT size wheel/tyre combos to actually fill the wheel arches. It's absolute BS. With current technology, all manufacturers should be trying to make cars as simple and light as possible. Fuck comfort. Learn to drive

[MarkMasters83]

@papapetad i share what your feeling but it has its ups and downs!!! i like to floor it and could carelesss about comfort but noot many share my enthusiast in ridwe quality! :) my gf and freinds are alwasy bitchy!! "i spilled sda on my shirt..!!! thanks alot" and im just thinking to myself "i mADE THIS CAR LIKE IT IS FOR A REASON HEHEHE soda stains on a white shirt hehehe" ;)

[papapetad]

@MarkMasters83 It's a way to filter out people. Those who accept you as you are ride with you. Those that don't can get their own car haha..

[MarkMasters83]

@papapetad true :)

[Kamukix]

@papapetad I can't believe there is another person in the world that agrees with me! Why is it that as technology goes on everything gets smaller and lighter and sharper except for cars!

When was the last time someone went into a store and bought a cell that was heavier, a bit bigger, a touch more powerful, a bit slower...and walked out happy?!? Yet this is what happens with cars all the time?

Now if your car doesn't have 300-400bhp it's slower than the older 180-280bhp cars...why?

Kei

[papapetad]

@Kamukix It's the push of capitalism to consume more and more. Throw the old, get the new. Bigger is better, newer is better. Meanwhile, the manufacturing of new cars is using up precious resources and killing the old arts of vehicle restoration. People don't realise that it's cheaper to get an older cool car with character and restore it, than to buy a new one. It's mass advertizing doing its brainwashing. It's disgusting and I hate car manufacturers for it. I'm buying older cars, always.

[Kamukix]

@papapetad well said

[sdlausen]

@papapetad You make a great point. Sadly though, most of us DON'T have the time to work on cars. You know... we have jobs in other fields that require different demands and our time. Another key note you don't mention, is vehicle safety and efficiency. Compare and old car to and new one in a crash and there is a very big difference. This though, won't stop me from buying my dream 67 Mustang and perhaps restoring it. As a daily driver though, I'll gladly drive a new, safe, fuel efficient car.

[papapetad]

@sdlausen But you can pay someone to do it , say you buy an older car known for a good compromise between comfort, dynamics, safety, style etc etc... It will have a few faults because maybe it is 10-20 years old. Mine's nearly 20. Spend a few thousands replacing old parts with new, and voila, you pretty much have a new car. A comprehensive valet service will make the car smell and feel new. And you have just saved yourself lots of $ and you have a much better car than you were going to buy.

[pswmetalmonkey]

@Kamukix safety and features they keep adding more and more general features and safety features so thus adding weight, thats the down side.

PSW

[sdlausen]

@Kamukix Do you live under a rock? Why do you think cars weigh more today? Think about it--it's called safety. Government regulation requires higher standards year, after year, exponentially increasing the weight of cars. A car today is 10x safer than a car from the 80s. Manufactures could make them lighter, but you would be paying 80k for a Ford Focus. Light, strong materials like carbon fiber and aluminum aren't cheap. Go buy a Honda and buy all carbon/aluminum parts for it yourself.

[danijel8888]

19" tyre in the back are much wider than 18" Not a fair comparison.

[TheGraveShifter]

No one really cares or stops to look at old hondas with 14's. We're talking about the new trend here 18's n 19's.

[Ramunis]

i have old honda with 14" and i buy 16". so, 16" beder on the corners, but now i have small kid, so i back to 14", its softer and less vibration. it depends, you vana race car or compfort car.

and when you changing rims and tires size, if diameter stais the same, there is no changes for torque or speed.

[johngorgis]

big rim= slow tourqe response and bad m.p.g

[zeroxstrife250]

Can someone please tell me how wheels and tires are measured? I really don't understand it that well yet. =/

[Vikturus2k6]

@zeroxstrife250 Well from my understanding, when refering to rim, The "diameter" of the wheel refers to the diameter at the bead surfaces. So you'd need to measure from one bead seat through the wheel to the bead seat on the opposite side.The lip of the wheel that keeps the lateral surface of the bead contained is typically 3/4 to 1" for passenger car wheels. So if you measure the OD of a 17" diameter wheel, it should be about 18.5". As for tires, its all in measurements of millimeters ...

[7JLC]

Not a fair comparison. The 18's had 225/45R18 and 245/45R18 tires on 18x8.5 +30 rims all around while the 19" setup had a staggered 245/35R19 and 275/35R19 tires on 19x8.5 +22 and 19x9.5 +22 rims

They changed tire width, rim width (Staggered), and offset (scrub). Too many variables to draw conclusions...

[daridave]

My two cents...

19" are good for: looking good, car shows (posing), race tracks and summer weather.

18" are good for: comfort (they absorb more), city streets and winter conditions.

Overall, the average person will be better off with 18" inch wheels. They still look great, they perform better for our needs and you'll see a great deal of money.

Great video!!!

[TheGraveShifter]

today's roads are more advance and much better pavement. today's tires are leap years advanced than before especially the sidewall. the new GTR comes in 20s, RX8 in 19s, compact cars like civics n sti use 18s.

[Ramunis]

@TheGraveShifter it costs more, thats whay they selling biger rims. to get more money. not cose of technology.

[TheGraveShifter]

very informative video. thanx for posting!

[ItalianDogg]

Well the thing about performance.. i think that what is important is the height of the tire.. having a 205/45 on 16" is better than having 205/65 on 16". The rim size must fit the fender, not be as big as possible

[carmodifire]

The best thing to do is to get brakes with high bite to size ratio, and get wheels that just fit them. Carbon ceramic brakes, I would say.

[xxpreciouSbabyxx]

I think its a stupid thing. My smart roadster with 15" wheels is faster than the roadster brabus with 17" wheels and 20HP more.

Simply because the weight of the wheel increases, and performance drops. Oversized rims makes the car unstable for racing, its only a look-fashion, like the tuning-exhaust pipe.

Why do F1 cars have so small rims and ugly exhaust?

[Jicba87]

larger wheels in motorsports are used mainly to fit the big brakes underneath, and not so much for the performance. I'm talking about the difference between one rim size up, or down, not 2 or more, because then the tire outer wall rigidity becomes a factor.

[NigguhJason]

Standardizing the rim size to 19" for a sports car is pretty dumb. Most tuners that prep their cars for the track will drop the rim size to about 17" or 18". 19" is too big for the track. Some even say the 19" will decrease performance. 19" rims is more of an apparel than performance. While 18" or 17" are used for performance; well they are the most common. Most companies give you the option to increase your rim size with the sports package, but it increases looks rather than the performance.

[LeakyDiaper]

Thanks, but NO thanks. I will stick with my 15's. When the public roads and freeways around here change to 85+ mph. Than I might consider it. Besides, the daily commute for the average Joe in America only needs a car and tires that go straight for awhile, come to an almost complete stop, turn 90 degrees and than go straight some more. Like putting a screen door on a submarine.

[makavelim3]

Thats a stupid test. why decreased the width of the tires when they switched to 18's ? the do know that they can run the same tire width on 18's !!

commercial vid big time

[FrankinStoner]

because all rims and tires dont come in all sizes

[walkandlookup]

what about holes on roads

[BlacKGraFFiX]

Insightful.

[mikepartyboy]

the rule for me is, smallest rims possible to fit around the brakes.

[HEKTIC458]

@mikepartyboy Very true. Thats what i also think is the best combo. Only have wheels big enough to fit the brakes you want/need. That way it saves weight and should make the car quicker (all things being equal)

[Synetearis]

@mikepartyboy 13inch ftw! 7/8 J :)

[SR20DETDOG]

V8 Supercars do.

It all depends on the rules of the class you are racing in.

[SR20DETDOG]

since the 19" wheels are larger in diameter doesn't that mean it can go faster? Not sure how much of a difference this would actually make to lap times, anyone know?

[mikepartyboy]

@SR20DETDOG

No, because lower profile tires are used.

Overall Diameter of the Wheel+tire stay the same.

If you use 18inch rim, your tire profile will be slightly thicker to accomdate

[SR20DETDOG]

@mikepartyboy

oh yeah, i forgot to take that into account.

[greenrolaids]

great vid, it was a little dry though.

[eautocad]

i had 19's on my benz and loved them, very responsive exactly like how they put it in this video. More skill is required for sure. Great review, five stars

[88shottahz]

lol nope......just make sure he doesnt upload them on those "my gf xrated pictures" website

[lejink]

big rims look great, until you find a pothole.

[Jigsjigz]

@lejink believe me i know this... cracks dents u name it + we have road humps here in the uk... so we have to go over them at under 10mph.

[dsportnissan]

The driver said that the 19"s would be great for practice for the average driver. I would have to go 18 and maybe you can make up the difference in other aspects of the car, shit plus tires are freakin expensive for a good setup.

[ac3jc]

enkei rpf1

[R8Prototype]

Hmm, what about the 3 piece wheel design by OZ?

[AntoDamicoShow]

OZ is special.

Everything they make is light, they just know how

[pyaethiha]

haha it is funny to me that people put huge ass rims which gives the person or the car no benefits at all. but these car manufacturers are considering a lot of things just to change one rim size. Shows IQ and Knowledge.

[greeleykid]

aftermarket rims commonly weigh less than stock rims which provides better mpg, acceleration, ect.

[JBlade007]

just 1 thing to remenber bigger rims means more money for tires!

[alexebox]

This review has been a long time coming. It's high time that coolness takes a second place to performance even if it may mean smaller wheels (blasphemy for some show offs trying to compensate for something).

From what I understand, at least on 350z there isn't much difference. The 19" are for pros with great skills, but your average driver is better served by 18". Not to mention the savings. Then again, nobody believes they are average, do they? Humility in all things.

[DONNYBOYY28]

The statement you make '19's are for pros with great skill" is meaningless !

[alexebox]

I was referring to what the tester said that the car is more lively and harder to keep neutral in turns when it has 19". Thus, an average driver might actually go faster with the 18" being less afraid to mess up in a turn.

[tubesurfer23]

Not realy a fair test since they also gave the 19" rims wider tires too.

[bogdan135]

@tubesurfer23 Yes, I noticed that too. 245 rear tire vs 275 makes a difference, bigger wheel or not.

[KuostA]

the rim itself was also wider.

[giannicabiglio]

Great comparison!

What about 17's?

[c0c0asauce]

thanks for the video very imformative im actually about to buy some new tires and rims for my 300zx this helped me make up my mind

[seroyer2]

amazing, tiers are a bit of a mystery to me, yet they have to be one of the most overlooked performance items on a car. The cars of today are so much faster then the cars of 20 or 30 years ago, because tire technology is so much greater, not only that they are much safer. part of the reason why cars stop so much better is that the grip that today tires provide is much higher.

[LotsOfPaypa]

very informative

[nght5tlkr]

I never gave that much thought into the differences a tire size made--now I know.